US: Website 'charges' selfie uploaders for charity

Next time you find yourself about to publish a smoking hot selfie of yourself on your favorite social media platform, think twice it could end up costing you. Despite the ‘selfie' being one of the dominating trends to emerge in 2013, it looks like a backlash against this particular form of online vanity is already underway. A website called SelfiePolice has been created by a group of students, targeting selfie publishers, ‘fining' them US$1 per photo and donating the money to charity. The website's tongue-in-cheek tagline is "You owe humanity a dollar." "On behalf of humanity, you are hereby fined US$1 per selfie on charges of self-obsession," reads the website jokingly. Yet the idea is clearly being taken seriously: the site has earned over US$1,400 since its launch on January 7. All proceeds are sent to Vittana, which provides college loans to students in developing countries. "The internet world loves the idea," co-founder Chas Barton told Relaxnews. "We're hoping celebrities will participate by posting a selfie, giving a shout out to #selfiepolice, and donating for their selfies." Barton set up the site with Dustin Locke, his advertising classmate at Brigham Young University in Utah. The pair wanted to encourage their generation to give back to society. Visitors to the website are encouraged to upload a selfie for US$1 (paid via PayPal), leaving them free to ‘police' their friends' online tracks and call them out on their selfies, encouraging them to donate too.